In My Place
Encyclopedia
"In My Place" is a song by English alternative rock
band Coldplay
. The song was written collaboratively by all the band members for their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
. The track is built around thumping drums, chiming guitars and a chorus. It was released on 5 August 2002 as the lead single
from A Rush of Blood to the Head and reached number two on the UK Singles Charts. The song reached number seventeen on Billboard
's Modern Rock Tracks.
"In My Place" was well received by critics. The song was complimented for its music and profound lyrics. "In My Place" won the award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
at the 45th Grammy Awards. The music video was nominated for two MuchMusic Video Awards
in 2003 in the categories of Best international video–group and People's Choice: Favorite international group.
magazine, Coldplay vocalist Chris Martin
stated that "In My Place" was a song they had left after recording the band's debut album, Parachutes
(2000). When the band finished recording their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
, Martin said that the album was complete. However after guitarist Jonny Buckland
played the song on his guitar, Martin said that they now needed to record and include the track on the album. Martin also said that: "That's about where you're put in the world, and how you're given your position, and the way you look, and how you have to get on with it."
In an interview, Buckland revealed that the song was hard to record, as the band had played the song live. He also commented that when they started recording the song, they did not know how the song should sound, due to the band members' contrasting ideas.
of 4/4 drumming, then a plaintive three-note
guitar line rings through a strummy rhythm, and Martin's vocals. Its instrumentation is varied with the sound of thumping drums, chiming guitars, a singalong chorus, and a string
arrangement. The song also features a guitar lick swirl
.
The three lines of the third verse allude to a man's love of a woman, who does not reciprocate his love. He is saying he will always wait for her, but he does not think that she should stay where she is any longer. The lyrics emphasize: "But I wait for you/if you go, if you go/leaving me here on my own/well I wait for you." The song's lyrics also include references to a desire for weary optimism.
. The single was pressed with two B-sides: "One I Love" and "I Bloom Blaum". The single cover features guitarist Jonny Buckland, with art directed by Sølve Sundsbø.
"In My Place" peaked at number two on UK Singles Charts on 17 August 2002, kept off the top by "Colourblind" by Darius Danesh
. It stayed at number two until 23 November 2002. The song reached number eighteen on Billboard
's Hot Modern Rock Tracks in 2002. The band were yet to have a number one single. In 2005, "Speed of Sound
", the lead single of the band's third album, X&Y
, also reached number two, but never the number one position. "Speed of Sound" was marked as Coldplay's most successful single until "Viva la Vida", reached number one in 2008.
A live recording of In My Place from Glastonbury Festival 2011
was released to download on Sunday 26th June, 2011.
review of the album, critic David Browne wrote: "Songs like 'In My Place' and 'Warning Sign' marry lyrics imbued with deep regret and mistakes (
wrote: "When the shimmering, pretty lead-off single 'In My Place' represents the album's weakest moment, you know you've got something extraordinary. Currently storming the charts a la 'Yellow', 'In My Place' is another surprisingly simple song, carried by Jon Buckland's chiming guitar and Chris Martin’s heartfelt vocals. It really shouldn't amount to much, but Coldplay make it work very well. When Martin sings, "Please, please, please/Come back and sing to me," he totally sells it, and you buy it. And why not? The song's lovely. Amy M. Bruce of The Towerlight
wrote: "With a slew of introspective rock songs like 'In My Place' and 'God Put a Smile Upon Your Face,' this album is worthy of the hype surrounding the band's first album." Jules Willis of the BBC
wrote: "The second track, the first written post-Parachutes and sounding like a refugee from that album, is the grower 'In My Place'. It's a fantastic pop tune that justifies Coldplay's status as one of UK's most exciting bands."
"In My Place" won a Grammy Award
in the category of Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
at the 2003 Grammy Awards. The song was nominated for two MuchMusic Video Awards
for Best international video–group and People's Choice: Favorite international group.
In 2003, "In My Place" was featured on Coldplay's live album
, Live 2003
. The song appeared in the 2006 episode "Saving Sammy" on CBS
' television series Cold Case. The song was used as a closing montage song about a case from 2003. The track appeared again on an episode of the television series Fastlane
. The song is also featured in as playable in Guitar Hero 5
(2009).
, and it debuted on 17 June 2002 on AOL
. It features a by-the-numbers band performance, in which the band is playing in a huge, nearly empty room. The two women in the background were members of the video crew: a makeup artist/wardrobe assistant and the video commissioner. The video starts off with band playing; while they play, Chris Martin who is sitting in a corner, gets up and joins them in the song. During the video, Martin sings directly to the camera. During the guitar solo, Martin runs up to two women in the background, talks to them for awhile, and then returns to sing the rest of the song. The video ends with the band finishing the song.
All versions of the official single included the B-side, "One I Love". This track was regularly performed on the subsequent A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour
and is also featured on the Live 2003
DVD.
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
. The song was written collaboratively by all the band members for their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head is the second studio album by English rock band Coldplay. Released on 26 August 2002 in the UK through the label Parlophone, the album was produced by the band and British record producer Ken Nelson...
. The track is built around thumping drums, chiming guitars and a chorus. It was released on 5 August 2002 as the lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
from A Rush of Blood to the Head and reached number two on the UK Singles Charts. The song reached number seventeen on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
's Modern Rock Tracks.
"In My Place" was well received by critics. The song was complimented for its music and profound lyrics. "In My Place" won the award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1980 and 2011.The award was discontinued after the 2011 award season in a major overhaul of Grammy categories...
at the 45th Grammy Awards. The music video was nominated for two MuchMusic Video Awards
MuchMusic Video Awards
The MuchMusic Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic to honour the year's best music videos....
in 2003 in the categories of Best international video–group and People's Choice: Favorite international group.
Background
In an interview with QQ (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
magazine, Coldplay vocalist Chris Martin
Chris Martin
Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin is an English song-writer, who is the lead vocalist, pianist and rhythm guitarist of the band Coldplay. He is married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.-Early life:...
stated that "In My Place" was a song they had left after recording the band's debut album, Parachutes
Parachutes
Parachutes is the debut album by English alternative rock band Coldplay, released by the record label Parlophone on 10 July 2000 in the United Kingdom. The album was produced by the band and British record producer Ken Nelson, excluding one track which was produced by Chris Allison...
(2000). When the band finished recording their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head
A Rush of Blood to the Head is the second studio album by English rock band Coldplay. Released on 26 August 2002 in the UK through the label Parlophone, the album was produced by the band and British record producer Ken Nelson...
, Martin said that the album was complete. However after guitarist Jonny Buckland
Jonny Buckland
Jonathan Mark "Jonny" Buckland is an English guitarist and musician, best known as the lead guitarist of the band Coldplay.-Early life:...
played the song on his guitar, Martin said that they now needed to record and include the track on the album. Martin also said that: "That's about where you're put in the world, and how you're given your position, and the way you look, and how you have to get on with it."
In an interview, Buckland revealed that the song was hard to record, as the band had played the song live. He also commented that when they started recording the song, they did not know how the song should sound, due to the band members' contrasting ideas.
Composition
The song opens with a single crash cymbal followed by two barsBar (music)
In musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined by a given number of beats of a given duration. Typically, a piece consists of several bars of the same length, and in modern musical notation the number of beats in each bar is specified at the beginning of the score by the top number of a...
of 4/4 drumming, then a plaintive three-note
Note
In music, the term note has two primary meanings:#A sign used in musical notation to represent the relative duration and pitch of a sound;#A pitched sound itself....
guitar line rings through a strummy rhythm, and Martin's vocals. Its instrumentation is varied with the sound of thumping drums, chiming guitars, a singalong chorus, and a string
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
arrangement. The song also features a guitar lick swirl
Lick (music)
In popular music genres such as rock or jazz music, a lick is "a stock pattern or phrase" consisting of a short series of notes that is used in solos and melodic lines...
.
The three lines of the third verse allude to a man's love of a woman, who does not reciprocate his love. He is saying he will always wait for her, but he does not think that she should stay where she is any longer. The lyrics emphasize: "But I wait for you/if you go, if you go/leaving me here on my own/well I wait for you." The song's lyrics also include references to a desire for weary optimism.
Release
Coldplay released "In My Place" in the US and UK on 5 August 2002 as the album's lead singleLead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
. The single was pressed with two B-sides: "One I Love" and "I Bloom Blaum". The single cover features guitarist Jonny Buckland, with art directed by Sølve Sundsbø.
"In My Place" peaked at number two on UK Singles Charts on 17 August 2002, kept off the top by "Colourblind" by Darius Danesh
Darius Danesh
Darius Campbell , also known as Darius Danesh or simply Darius, is a British Iranian platinum-selling singer-songwriter, a West End stage actor, operatic baritone, Sunday Times best-selling author, and an Ambassador for The Prince's Trust.He established himself as a popular West End leading...
. It stayed at number two until 23 November 2002. The song reached number eighteen on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
's Hot Modern Rock Tracks in 2002. The band were yet to have a number one single. In 2005, "Speed of Sound
Speed of Sound (song)
"Speed of Sound" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their third album, X&Y. Built around a piano riff, the song builds into a huge, synthesizer-heavy chorus...
", the lead single of the band's third album, X&Y
X&Y
X&Y is the third studio album by English rock band Coldplay, released 6 June 2005 in the United Kingdom via the record label Parlophone. The album, which features influences of electronic music, was produced by the band and British record producer Danton Supple...
, also reached number two, but never the number one position. "Speed of Sound" was marked as Coldplay's most successful single until "Viva la Vida", reached number one in 2008.
A live recording of In My Place from Glastonbury Festival 2011
Glastonbury Festival 2011
The 2011 Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts was held from 22–26 June 2011. Tickets for the festival went on sale from 9 am on Sunday 3 October 2010, over 37 weeks before the festival was set to begin, with a deposit of £50 being paid, while the whole cost of a ticket is £195...
was released to download on Sunday 26th June, 2011.
Reception
Critics were positive towards the song. In the Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
review of the album, critic David Browne wrote: "Songs like 'In My Place' and 'Warning Sign' marry lyrics imbued with deep regret and mistakes (
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
wrote: "When the shimmering, pretty lead-off single 'In My Place' represents the album's weakest moment, you know you've got something extraordinary. Currently storming the charts a la 'Yellow', 'In My Place' is another surprisingly simple song, carried by Jon Buckland's chiming guitar and Chris Martin’s heartfelt vocals. It really shouldn't amount to much, but Coldplay make it work very well. When Martin sings, "Please, please, please/Come back and sing to me," he totally sells it, and you buy it. And why not? The song's lovely. Amy M. Bruce of The Towerlight
The Towerlight
The Towerlight is the award-winning twice-weekly independent student newspaper at Towson University. It is run by Towson students, and frequently updates the campus on events and news...
wrote: "With a slew of introspective rock songs like 'In My Place' and 'God Put a Smile Upon Your Face,' this album is worthy of the hype surrounding the band's first album." Jules Willis of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
wrote: "The second track, the first written post-Parachutes and sounding like a refugee from that album, is the grower 'In My Place'. It's a fantastic pop tune that justifies Coldplay's status as one of UK's most exciting bands."
"In My Place" won a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in the category of Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1980 and 2011.The award was discontinued after the 2011 award season in a major overhaul of Grammy categories...
at the 2003 Grammy Awards. The song was nominated for two MuchMusic Video Awards
MuchMusic Video Awards
The MuchMusic Video Awards are annual awards presented by the Canadian music video channel MuchMusic to honour the year's best music videos....
for Best international video–group and People's Choice: Favorite international group.
In 2003, "In My Place" was featured on Coldplay's live album
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
, Live 2003
Live 2003
Live 2003 is a live album by English alternative rock band Coldplay, first released in November 2003. The set features concerts filmed at Sydney's Hordern Pavilion on 21 July 2003 and 22 July 2003....
. The song appeared in the 2006 episode "Saving Sammy" on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' television series Cold Case. The song was used as a closing montage song about a case from 2003. The track appeared again on an episode of the television series Fastlane
Fastlane (TV series)
Fastlane is an American action/crime drama series that was broadcast on Fox from 2002 to 2003. On August 14, 2005 G4 began rebroadcasting the complete series. After finishing its initial run on the network, Fastlane stopped airing on G4...
. The song is also featured in as playable in Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5 is a music video game and the fifth main entry in the Guitar Hero series. The game was developed by Neversoft and published by RedOctane and Activision, and released internationally in September 2009 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, 3 and Wii consoles...
(2009).
Music video
The music video for "In My Place" was directed by Sophie MullerSophie Muller
Sophie Muller is a British music video director, noted for her long-time collaborations with artists like Sophie Ellis-Bextor, No Doubt, Sade, Shakira, Shakespears Sister, Garbage, Blur, Annie Lennox and Eurythmics.-Background:...
, and it debuted on 17 June 2002 on AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
. It features a by-the-numbers band performance, in which the band is playing in a huge, nearly empty room. The two women in the background were members of the video crew: a makeup artist/wardrobe assistant and the video commissioner. The video starts off with band playing; while they play, Chris Martin who is sitting in a corner, gets up and joins them in the song. During the video, Martin sings directly to the camera. During the guitar solo, Martin runs up to two women in the background, talks to them for awhile, and then returns to sing the rest of the song. The video ends with the band finishing the song.
Track listing
- "In My Place" – 3:48
- "One I Love" – 4:35
- "I Bloom Blaum" – 2:11
All versions of the official single included the B-side, "One I Love". This track was regularly performed on the subsequent A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour
A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour
A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour was a global concert tour by Coldplay launched in support of the band's second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. Officially, the tour ran for almost nine months in 2003, covering five continents in the process. In 2002, Coldplay also performed a series of...
and is also featured on the Live 2003
Live 2003
Live 2003 is a live album by English alternative rock band Coldplay, first released in November 2003. The set features concerts filmed at Sydney's Hordern Pavilion on 21 July 2003 and 22 July 2003....
DVD.
Charts
| Chart (2002) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australia Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
23 |
| Canadian Singles Chart Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
2 |
| Denmark Singles Chart | 16 |
| France Singles Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
60 |
| Italy Singles Chart | 4 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
2 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
24 |
| Norway Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
17 |
| UK Airplay Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
2 |
| US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles The Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It lists the top 25 singles below number 100 that have not yet charted on the Billboard Hot 100. Sometimes, however, singles halt their progress on this chart, and never appear on the Hot 100... |
17 |
| US Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 17 |
Literature
- Roach, Martin (2003). Coldplay: Nobody Said It Was Easy. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-9810-8.